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Editorial for Sept. 11

By Staff | Sep 11, 2019

After suffering the wrath of potholes for the past couple of years, area residents are seeing some relief as Route 2 is getting a makeover through New Martinsville and Paden City. Busted ball joints and tie-rods, broken windows and bent wheel rims have been the norm as we have tried to navigate around the giant sinkholes. One would have thought the out of pocket repair cost to drivers would have triggered a much faster response to the need, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. The repairs are small in nature compared to the danger that exists along Rt. 2 from the increase in heavy equipment and truck traffic.

I presume we shall see further repairs as election time is approaching, but they will rapidly disappear once the election is over. That is the way it works, damage to vehicles, car accidents, injuries and even death does not matter until election time. Rt 2 between Paden City and Sistersville may have the most dangerous mile and a half of roadway in the entire state. Last year there were no less than four major slips which closed the road, while several smaller slips occurred in the same area.

Here in our office it is common to receive complaints concerning the roadways. They range from normal wear and tear of the roads to large dangerous holes that suddenly appear out of nowhere. However, the hillside between the two small communities is a major concern and a very real danger to all who travel that area. It is not a new problem and has been brought to the attention of the DOH on many occasions. What will it take to make it safe? Why is it neglected? Caution falling rock signs and a large spotlight are not enough! Before long, it will be winter which brings even greater danger to the area. It is a tragedy waiting to happen, let’s not wait until it’s to late to take the necessary action to prevent loss of life.

It was recently announced by the State that West Virginia has jumped 20 spots in the highway rankings. According to reports submitted by the state to the federal government West Virginia nows ranks 16th in the nation. Don’t take that to mean we have better road conditions, we all know that it’s not true. The ranking comes from 13 categories the state submitted, the information puts us at number two in the country for least urban congestion, number two nationwide for urban area disbursement per mile, and number three in the nation for capital bridge disbursements per mile. There are several other categories, but you get the drift. It’s like the Fox guarding the Hen House!